In a large-scale, high-volume ink-jet printer, particularly one in which printing is performed on a continuous web such as of paper, it is desirable to provide a subsystem for removing waste material from the area around the printheads. Such waste material that results from use of a large machine includes accumulations of dirt and paper particles, as well as ink that splashes around the machine during the printing process, or ink that bleeds from printheads when the machine is idle.
In printers that use caustic or otherwise harmful inks, such as UV-curable inks, it is also necessary that the collected waste ink and other materials are conveyed to a safe container for disposal, with minimal interaction by a human user.